Interconnect processes

What is the design practice called in which active devices and wiring are placed directly beneath the bond pads used for wire bonding and the like?

  1. AScribe line
  2. BCUP (circuit under pad)
  3. CDummy fill
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Answer: B. CUP (circuit under pad)

Circuits were traditionally kept out from under pads so that bonding impact would not damage the layers below. CUP reinforces the structure beneath the pad and places circuits there, reducing chip area. With weak materials such as low-k films, ensuring strength is a challenge.

  • A. A scribe line is the region for separating chips.
  • B. Correct. It places circuits under the pads.
  • C. Dummy fill is non-functional patterning added for CMP planarity.
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More Interconnect processes questions

  1. Which technique deposits a Cu alloy with a small addition of manganese or similar and, through annealing, lets a thin barrier form spontaneously at the interface with the dielectric?
  2. For long, wide wires such as the clock network of a chip running at several GHz, which wire property must be considered in addition to resistance and capacitance?
  3. What is the main reason the wiring material of advanced LSIs was changed from aluminum (Al) to copper (Cu)?
  4. Which correctly describes the damascene process commonly used to form copper wiring?
  5. What is the main purpose of using low-k (low dielectric constant) materials for interlayer dielectrics?